Arena Update

[GP1]

Sorry I have no interest in watching our zips play in a glorified high school gym on tv. There is nothing more embarrassing than a school like Akron building an arena of 3000.

I have no interest in that either. I also have no interest in watching our usual crowd of 3,000 people in an arena with 7,000 empty seats. One is just as pathetic as the other. Maybe 4,500 people in an arena of 7,000 would be a good fit. We would only have to replace a little over half the seats every ten years and all of the seats every 20 years.

[zen]

Sorry I have no interest in watching our zips play in a glorified high school gym on tv. There is nothing more embarrassing than a school like Akron building an arena of 3000.

Which supports the concept of not overbuilding size but investing instead in quality.

I am also a huge fan of seat-backs, and do not get inspired by the idea sitting on a flat bench for hours.

[akzipper]

I have no interest in that either. I also have no interest in watching our usual crowd of 3,000 people in an arena with 7,000 empty seats. One is just as pathetic as the other. Maybe 4,500 people in an arena of 7,000 would be a good fit. We would only have to replace a little over half the seats every ten years and all of the seats every 20 years.

I agree that around 7000 would be perfect. When I hear "small arena" I tend to think of 4000 or below, which is what I thought you were suggesting. I think we would easily average over 4,000 in an arena that size. The "draw" of Infocision wore off because the team was so awful and almost painful to watch. A new arena draws fans, and winning basketball will make them come back. This is the main reason I think UA needs to hurry up and get something done while our program is at it's strongest.

[taxpayer]

I'd propose 6000 seats, seat back seats with bleachers on 3 sides of the court for student seating (see Univ of Pgh). This would help create seating where students might be able to create the atmosphere lacking in the JAR. It would also allow more "floor" space for practice options (shooting machines/stations)

This number of seats might create a scenerio where more season tickets could be sold if the Zips continue to improve their hoops program as appears to be the case now. Too big a capacity would make tickets easy to come by and lessen the possibility of sellouts, hence fewer season tickets.

I'd suggest putting a UA dining hall in this facility with some decent sized banquet rooms and a booster lounge as well. I'd rather see on campus than off campus but I'll leave that to more knowledgable Master Planners.

Quality rather than quantity.

[Blue & Gold]

I'm hoping for at least 7,000 seats.

But Gonzaga's new basketball arena sits 6,000 & it's a nice looking facility.

I'm assuming we want to include loges in our design. I'm also assuming the loges would be located between an upper level and the floor level. If those assumptions are correct, even a 6,000-seat facility would look much bigger than Gonzaga's (no loges).

I just really want our arena to have a "big time" feel to it. Something that really impresses.

They hit a grand slam with the Info (I'll never get over Ianello ruining our football program at the most inopportune time). I'm sure the trustees would desire a similar "wow" factor when building a new arena. Many people in the community, myself included, really only have contact with UA through football & basketball (and soccer).

[akzipper]

They hit a grand slam with the Info (I'll never get over Ianello ruining our football program at the most inopportune time). I'm sure the trustees would desire a similar "wow" factor when building a new arena. Many people in the community, myself included, really only have contact with UA through football & basketball (and soccer).

I feel the same way when relating a new arena to Infocision. When inside the stadium it definitely doesn't feel like 30,000, but rather MUCH bigger. When it was sold out the atmosphere rivaled any stadium I've ever been in. It's one of the nicest buildings in the country, and best in the MAC by a longshot. But in my opinion UA should be under pressure to make the arena just as nice, if not better. Outdoor stadiums are much different than arenas. Seating can be expanded fairly easily and renovations can be made if needed. When building an arena you have to get it right the first time. Mess it up, and UA will be stuck with inadequate arena in a few decades. Also arenas can be used all year round. While football stadiums in Ohio would only get use 5 months of the year. 7,000 is a happy medium for me. Not too big, not too small. I personally wanted 9-10,000, but it seems unrealistic at this moment. The key is the "wow" factor and big-time feel. Multiple levels, suites, close seating, and a nice big scoreboard at center court.

[Wally B]

Side topic: I was just thinking back to a playoff game during HS down at McKinley High in Canton. Does anyone know what that fieldhouse seats. It's still a gym, but it has an arena layout. I'd say only 600 attended that game, but the noise was incredible and the place rocked as the game came down to who'd sink the final shot.

[Hilltopper]

Side topic: I was just thinking back to a playoff game during HS down at McKinley High in Canton. Does anyone know what that fieldhouse seats. It's still a gym, but it has an arena layout. I'd say only 600 attended that game, but the noise was incredible and the place rocked as the game came down to who'd sink the final shot.

Memorial Fieldhouse

Opened in 1950, the 58-year-old Canton Memorial Field House is home to the McKinley basketball and volleyball teams. Located at the site of McKinley High School, Fawcett Stadium, and the CT Branin Natatorium, the Field House boasts a seating capacity of 4,800. Home to all Canton City School basketball teams (McKinley, Timken, Lehman, Lincoln) the facility has an unmatched tradition in Ohio basketball. Four state championship teams have played here (three from McKinley, one from Lehman). The Field House has also hosted countless OHSAA tournament games, concerts, and community events. A string of renovations during 2003 and 2004 ushered in a new parquet floor, new lighting, displays honoring Canton City's basketball tradition, new paint, new seating everywhere in the arena, new baskets, new scoreboards, and new message displays. These projects helped keep the Field House a proud Canton landmark. As the venerable arena soon enters its seventh decade of use, it continues to be at the very heart of athletics in Canton, Ohio.

[ROCK1]

How about Toledo? Seats 7,300. Loges, club seats, suites, restaurant.

[ziptrumpet87]

How about Toledo? Seats 7,300. Loges, club seats, suites, restaurant.

SOLD

[RowdyZip]

How about Toledo? Seats 7,300. Loges, club seats, suites, restaurant.

The recent upgrades/remodel of Savage Hall (now Savage Arena) have made it one of the nicer venues in the MAC. However, it's not a great place to watch the game. The pitch of the seats makes some of the GA seats VERY far from the action. While it's light years better than before, it's still one of the worst layouts for the crowd to affect the game. Very wide open and spread out.

[akzipper]

Yeah watching Savage Arena on TV last night, wasn't very impressed. Don't get me wrong it's better than the JAR, but I think UA can do much better. The capacity would be a good fit but I don't like the layout. It's asymmetrical and very strange, seems like 70-80% of the seats are on one side of the arena. Also seemed that most of the seating was on the same level, with the exception of suites/club, and barely any behind the hoops.

[Dave in Green]

..... The pitch of the seats makes some of the GA seats VERY far from the action. .....

The pitch of the seats makes a critical difference. You want the pitch to be so steep that the elderly require assistance to get to their seats. You can see from the Toledo photos that the pitch is too shallow to keep the whole crowd close to the court.

[LZIp]

Ohio's seating is pretty steep if I recall correctly.

[Dave in Green]

Well, it's painful for Zips fans to look at OU's arena when it's packed with fans and compare it with the JAR, but here it is.

[Dr Z]

...look at OU's arena...here it is.

Nice photography. I'm always jealous of their student section. Hopefully some day...

[tbozeglav]

Well, it's painful for Zips fans to look at OU's arena when it's packed with fans and compare it with the JAR, but here it is.

its easy to fill an arena when thats about the only significant large-scale entertainment venue for 50 miles. Supply and demand...

[plowerman78]

Dr. Z ur not the only one, but i dont want to get into that conversation again, so go Zips!

[taxpayer]

to the powers that be, please take note of the location OU's band....directly across from the visitors bench. Where it should be. Please move the band back to our opponents end.

[ZachTheZip]

to the powers that be, please take note of the location OU's band....directly across from the visitors bench. Where it should be. Please move the band back to our opponents end.

I had a conversation the other day regarding the placement of the student section and the band. I argued that they should be switched. I believe that the band should be right in the opposing bench's ears. I also think that it would be possible to enforce a designated student section on the north side, by putting up ropes near the student entrance, and between that section and the GA seats, to force them to all sit there. I think it would be much more effective than letting them mix in with the less energetic GA crowd that pressures them to sit down and be quiet.

The answer I was given is that the university believes that having the student section near to the opposing bench creates the best home court advantage, and that this is how most schools have their seating arrangements set up. They wanted the entire south side to be students, and the band volunteered to move to allow this to happen, and also to gain more space for their ever-growing trombone section.

My counter-argument is that having a large, unified student section where all the students have to sit together would provide a greater advantage in creating an intimidating atmosphere, even if they're not right next to the opposing bench. Besides that, sitting them on the south side makes the seating unenforceable. There's nothing to stop students from sitting in GA. This also allows the band to be right next to the opposing bench, where they can be loud and obnoxious to their hearts' content.

Of course, simply putting the students on a side of the arena instead of behind the basket would make more sense than any other option, but that's not being considered.

[ZachTheZip]

Last thing I've heard is that we can expect to remain in the JAR for at least five more years. I don't know if that means it will be five more years until an official announcement of a new arena, or if we'll hear something sooner and it won't be built for at least five years.

[Blue & Gold]

Last thing I've heard is that we can expect to remain in the JAR for at least five more years. I don't know if that means it will be five more years until an official announcement of a new arena, or if we'll hear something sooner and it won't be built for at least five years.

Where'd you hear that? And any talk of a desired seating capacity?

[ZachTheZip]

Where'd you hear that? And any talk of a desired seating capacity?

I asked a friend. Five years isn't an official timeline, of course, but it's an expectation based on how slowly things are moving.

No talk of seating capacity. This is the time when things should be moving forward faster than ever, but it's not.

[akzipper]

Very disappointing if true. A lot can happen in 5 years. This should be the #1 priority at UA, yet it seems like an afterthought. Keep dragging our feet and the basketball program will fall into the dumpster just like football and potentially soccer.

[RootforRoo44]

Very disappointing if true. A lot can happen in 5 years. This should be the #1 priority at UA, yet it seems like an afterthought. Keep dragging our feet and the basketball program will fall into the dumpster just like football and potentially soccer.

I find it hard to believe that no one is willing to throw money at this. The economy is terrible, sure, but there are people with money out there just waiting to spend it on something to get their name on it. FIND THEM!